This great variety is what makes the Hunt Collection a true Collection rather than an Exhibition. It checks all the boxes because it shows the whole gamut of figures produced before 1840. It is a privilege working with it, and I still get goosebumps handling the figures. If you want inspiration for your own collection, pick up a copy of "Holding the Past" and immerse yourself in the beauty of the figures and the amazing stories they tell.
Amusingly, this bust in the Hunt Collection titled H HUNT ESQ is NOT Herbert Hunt! Rather, it is the Englishman Henry Hunt, who was instrumental in reforming the English electoral system in the early nineteenth century. Courtesy the William Herbert and Nancy Hunt Collection.
Nancy, on the other hand, loves the prettiness of her figures above all else. Her sharp eyes pick up the tiniest details, and she particularly loves religious figures and figures of sweet children. Together, Nancy and Herbert make a perfect collecting team--a "dream team." Because their collecting passion manifests itself in different ways, the Hunt Collection is extraordinarily broad, with plenty of both "ordinary" and extraordinary figures.
From the perspective of a minimalist, collecting is a form of insanity. But from where I sit, those who think less is more...well, they just don't know what they are missing. By now, I have seen many early Staffordshire figure collections, and I often ask myself what it is all about. WHY do we collect as we do? Some of us collect only for prettiness, the sheer beauty of an early figure. Others find figures intrinsically or historically interesting, and their collections facilitate curiosity in one form or other. In fact, I think facilitating curiosity is one of the more logical reasons for collecting.
When I first met Herbert and Nancy Hunt, I was struck by Herbert's intense curiosity, his determination to learn about the history reflected in his figures. But it doesn't stop there. Herbert believes that knowing the past is essential to understanding the present and the future--and so he loves figures whose tales span time. And the Hunt Collection abounds in figures that do just this.
When I first met Herbert and Nancy Hunt, I was struck by Herbert's intense curiosity, his determination to learn about the history reflected in his figures. But it doesn't stop there. Herbert believes that knowing the past is essential to understanding the present and the future--and so he loves figures whose tales span time. And the Hunt Collection abounds in figures that do just this.
Courtesy the William Herbert and Nancy Hunt Collection.
